imec.istart

Accelerator, Incubator, FellowshipActive
Type: AcceleratorInvestment: Pre-seed investment (amount not published) (Equity)Applications: No (Opening 2026-09-01)Deadline: 2026-09-30Format: CohortUniversity: imec, affiliated with KU Leuven, Ghent University and other Flemish universitiesLocation: Flanders, BelgiumWebsiteApply

Facilities: Access to the imec research ecosystem and regional startup hubs

Support: Tailored coaching, expert mentoring, investor and corporate access, international network

The deep tech accelerator of imec, Europe’s nanoelectronics and digital technology research institute, for startups with a tech product, a complementary founding team and a working proof of concept. Selected companies receive pre-seed investment plus tailored coaching, expert mentoring, corporate and investor access, and entry to imec’s international research ecosystem. It runs country-specific calls: Belgium and Germany open 1-30 September 2026, the Netherlands in October and Spain from October to November. The German track is explicitly deep tech focused and the Italian track focuses on robotics and medtech.

Deep Tech (Generalist)Semiconductors and ComputingAI and Machine LearningRobotics and AutomationHealthcare and Med Tech

Founder Intel

Sign in to read intel from founders who have worked with imec.istart.

What founders say about imec.istart

Be the first to share intel on imec.istart — it's free.

Get Started Free